2-[(3,4-Dichlorophenoxy) methyl]-2-imidazoline and its pharmaceutically acceptable salts are known to have antidepressant and barbiturate antagonist activity (White, U.S. Pat. No. 3,449,355) and alcohol antagonist activity (Marshall U.S. Pat. No. 3,860,719). The compound is generically known as "fenmetozole." Fenmetozole and its salts have a favorable low toxicity. Fenmetozole hydrochloride has been administered to adult humans, both normal subjects and schizophrenic and/or depressed patients at dosages of 250 to 450 milligrams fenmetozole hydrochloride per day for 3-4 weeks. (Chien and Kaplan, Curr. Therap. Res. 11,471-474 (1969) and 13,350-352 (1971)) and has also been administered to normal adults at single dosages ranging from 25 to 250 milligrams with no ill effects reported other than a "tingling sensation" on the skin reported by some of the subjects, decreased heart rate and increased blood pressure at high dose level, Fink, Curr. Therap. Res. 18, 590-596 (October 1975).
Minimal Brain Dysfunction ("MBD") is a recognized neuropathological condition occurring in children, characterized by symptoms including hyperkinesis, chronic short attention span, distractibility, emotional lability and a characteristic electroencephalogram ("EEG"). Ethiology is unknown and diagnosis requires discrimination between MBD and similar behavioral symptons due to environmental factors (such as diet) and/or primary psychiatric disorder. EEG analysis is thus a significant factor in differential diagnosis. Over the last ten years, stimulant drugs have assumed a major role in the treatment of children with Minimal Brain Dysfunction. The synthetic sympathomimetic amines (especially methylphenidate) are known to be particularly useful. Recent advances in electrophysiology, utilizing specialized equipment and computerized measurement, permit the precise evaluation of various forms of brain dysfunction and abnormality. The practical application of these techniques permit: assessment of neuropathology, evaluation of drug effects, and assessment of sensory function and cognitive processes with a high degree of objectivity.